Author: Christie Williams

Education Professor Publishes Paper with Former Students

“Angie” Su, Ed.D.

 

Hui Fang Huang “Angie” Su, Ed.D., Professor, Department of Education, at NSU’s Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice, published a paper entitled, Creative Geometry Games, with her two former master students, Dylan Mandolini and Bhagi Phuel in the Dimensions in Mathematics Journal, a publication of the Florida Council of Teachers of Mathematics, a state chapter of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (Vol. 40 No. 2, pp. 10-17).

The article aims to share creative teaching strategies with teachers, hence spark their creativity while teaching geometry and other mathematics topics. Many mathematics games can be applied in the classroom, adapted into follow-up activities, or even used as projects. The articles’ synopsis suggests that the teacher has a vital role as a participant when using games. Not only do games provide excellent means for a teacher to participate, but they allow the teacher to analyze their students. Additionally, the article introduces some creative mathematics games which can serve as tools for informal assessment for the teachers. The publication also suggests that it builds strength to the learning outcome when incorporating technology with a game.

For additional classroom activities and a copy of the paper, please contact Dr. Angie Su (shuifang@nova.edu

Halmos Professor Authors an Article in the Journal Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics

Richard H. Perry, Ph.D.

Recently, Halmos College faculty member Richard H. Perry, Ph.D. authored a research article entitled, “Theoretical study of the adsorption of analgesic environmental pollutants on pristine and nitrogen-doped graphene nanosheets”. A member of the Department of Chemistry and Physics,  his article was published in the journal Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics.

The article’s abstract states: “Interactions of the analgesic medications dextropropoxyphene (DPP, opioid), paracetamol (PCL, nonnarcotic), tramadol (TDL, nonnarcotic), ibuprofen (IBN, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID)), and naproxen (NPX, NSAID) with pristine graphene (GN) and nitrogen-doped GN (NGN; containing only graphitic N atoms) nanosheets were explored using density functional theory (DFT) in the gas and aqueous phases. Calculations in the aqueous phase were performed using the integral equation formalism polarized continuum model (IEFPCM). Calculated geometry-optimized structures, partial atomic charges (determined using Natural Bond Orbital analysis), highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO)-lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energy gaps, work functions (determined using time-dependent DFT), and molecular electrostatic potential plots showed that the adsorption process is physical in nature (viz. physisorption), primarily due to noncovalent π–π and van der Waals interactions. In addition, calculated adsorption energies (ΔEad) were exergonic, indicating that formation of the analgesic/GN and analgesic/NGN complexes is thermodynamically favorable in the gas (ΔEad values for analgesic/GN and analgesic/NGN were in the range of −66.56 kJ mol−1 to −106.78 kJ mol−1) and aqueous phases (ΔEad values for analgesic/GN and analgesic/NGN complexes were in the range of −58.75 kJ mol−1 to −100.46 kJ mol−1). Generally, for GN and NGN, adsorption was more endergonic in the aqueous phase by as much as +10.41 kJ mol−1. Calculated solvation energies (ΔEsolvation) were exergonic for all analgesic/GN complexes (ΔEsolvation values were in the range of −56.50 kJ mol−1 to −66.17 kJ mol−1) and analgesic/NGN complexes (ΔEsolvation values were in the range of −77.26 kJ mol−1 to −87.96 kJ mol−1), with analgesic/NGN complexes exhibiting greater stability in aqueous solutions (∼20 kJ mol−1 more stable). In summary, the results of this theoretical study demonstrate that the adsorption and solvation of analgesics on GN and NGN nanosheets is thermodynamically favorable. In addition, generally, analgesic/NGN complexes exhibit higher adsorption affinities and solvation energies in the gas and aqueous phases. Therefore, GN and NGN nanosheets are potential adsorbents for extracting analgesic contaminants from aqueous environments such as aquatic ecosystems.”

 Citation: Richard H. Perry *, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/D0CP05543C

Shark Chats Academic Forums: COVID-19 Update: Vaccines and Variants, Jan. 27

SHARK CHATS WEBINAR – COVID-19 Update: Vaccines and Variants Featuring Johannes W. Vieweg, M.D., FACS

Wednesday, January 27 at noon, EST.

Johannes W. Vieweg, M.D., FACS is Dean and Chief Academic Officer of NSU’s Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Allopathic Medicine. His presentation will address the public health value of the COVID-19 vaccines, information on the recovery plan to manage the production, distribution and administration of the FDA approved vaccines and the new emerging COVID-19 variants.

NSU Alumna Combines Passions for Psychology and Sports in Work

Andrea Corn

Andrea Corn, Psy.D., did not follow a traditional route into graduate school, but the path she forged allowed her to combine her passions for sports and helping people.

Corn was drawn to psychology after experiencing the benefits of therapy firsthand.

“I went into therapy to heal my own unresolved emotional wounds,” she said. “I did not ever intend to become a psychologist; this was not a career path.”

Originally from St. Louis, Corn said her parents pressed her to marry at an early age. After having two children, she divorced her husband and went into therapy. It was in therapy that Corn said she finally felt heard, her feelings were validated and understood by someone.

“My parents meant well; they loved me and cared about me, but they never knew how to really listen as feeling were often dismissed or ignored” she said.

According to Corn, her experiences in therapy were transformational and placed her on the path to psychology. She returned to school and earned a bachelor’s in psychology from Florida Atlantic University before beginning graduate school at Nova Southeastern University. Corn credits her faculty advisor, Bernard Eingold, with encouraging her to pursue a doctorate in Clinical Psychology instead of the master’s program. In working through the doctoral program, multiple faculty members were helpful and supportive – notably Robert C. Lane, as they collaborated on four scholarly journal articles. Other professors who were influential included Jan Faust (Child Assessment and Testing), Alan Katell (Interviewing) Eugene Shapiro (Mentoring), and Jim Taylor (Sports).

During this time, she balanced the demands of graduate school with raising two young children on her own. Corn worked with children and adolescents for her clinical practicums and matched at Miami Children’s Hospital for her full year, full-time doctoral internship. Working at the in-patient unit, Corn carried out psychological testing and specialized in emotional/behavioral disorders, eating disorders and PTSD. Corn worked with children from different socioeconomic backgrounds and integrated sports psychology into her practice.

“I’ve played a lot of sports since childhood,” she said. “Sports has always been a part of my practice because I look at it as all the life lessons that children can learn.”

In 1995, she brought sports and children together again with a teen sports network radio show on an AM radio station. Working with 40 high schoolers for six months, Corn produced and hosted the show, which included segments on athletes as role models, plus a mailbag answering questions from teen athletes about their anxieties and problems.

Since her time at NSU, Corn has worked in both group and solo practices across South Florida. She also served as an adjunct faculty member at St. Thomas University, where she taught undergraduate and graduate courses in sports psychology in the business school. Outside of clinical practice and teaching, Corn has given many talks locally (i.e., schools, libraries, bookstores) as well presentations at state and national conferences. And, for years she wrote columns on mental health and parenting topics tor the Miami Herald, Sporting Kid (of the National Alliance of Youth Sports), Lighthouse Point, and South Florida Parenting magazine.

Corn wanted to reach a wider audience for her sports-based work, which led to her teaming up with sports columnist Ethan J. Skolnick to co-write the 2012 book “Raising Your Game: Over 100 Accomplished Athletes Help You Guide Your Girls and Boys Through Sports.” The book featured interviews with over 100 athletes from different fields like LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Dan Marino. In each interview, athletes discussed their childhoods, including family structure, socioeconomic background, and culture. Collectively, the book shows parents and children the benefits of participating in sports.

“Sports teaches us so much about ourselves in how you handle victory, defeat, and adversity,” Corn said. “It teaches universal life lessons.”

Corn is grateful for the education she received at NSU and the lasting relationships she built with faculty members. After finding success in the field for many years, and devoting time to her family as an actively involved grandmother has added renewed purpose, Corn feels reinvigorated to shift her focus on giving back to students, the community, and sharing her life experiences of psychology’s invaluable role.

 

NSU Alumna Retires From Yale University After Long Career

Nova Southeastern University alumna Carole Goldberg, Psy.D., recently retired from Yale University after working there for 25 years, but her professional journey has taken her to different careers and places.

In the mid 1960s, Goldberg worked as an elementary school teacher, first at a Native American reservation in Washington state, then in a small town in Alabama, and finally in St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

“It’s been a wonderfully rich sociological environment all along the way,” Goldberg said of her time as an elementary teacher. “I learned a lot from my students, getting a glimpse into their lives, what’s important to them, what their family structures are like.”

Goldberg also worked as a teacher in New York, but returned to the Virgin Islands and shifted gears to hospitality, working in hotel management and as a retail merchandise manager for jewelry and watches.

“It was a wonderful experience, being able to travel the world with a purpose,” she said.

After getting married, Goldberg relocated to South Florida to live with her husband and his two children. Goldberg decided to take several classes at Florida Atlantic University, but she quickly realized that she preferred to pursue a full graduate degree and applied to the psychology master’s program at NSU. A faculty member named Isabel Streisand encouraged Goldberg to switch to the Clinical Psychology doctoral program.

“One of the things I’ve talked about to a lot of student groups is people who are signposts in my life, like my coach in high school who said, ‘you should go to this college’,” Goldberg said.

Goldberg said navigating through graduate school meant unlearning many things she had learned after being out of school for 25 years. One of her favorite aspects of her time at NSU was the diversity of thought illustrated by the College of Psychology’s faculty members.

“They had wonderful collective experience,” she said. “A diversity of schools of psychology that they ascribed to.”

After graduating with her doctorate in 1996, Goldberg matched to Yale University for her postdoctoral internship, which eventually led to a full-time position as a staff psychologist in the university’s Department of Mental Health and Counseling. Goldberg initially worked in treatment but later took on additional roles as the university sought to increase the profile for its mental health services. Goldberg worked in health education and trained groups of peer counselors tasked with supporting sexual assault survivors. Goldberg also underwent additional training to become a certified sex therapist.

Goldberg found that there was a need for additional university resources for handling sexual assault. In 2006, Goldberg set up the SHARE (Sexual Harassment Assault Response and Education) Center and served as its first director. Goldberg described the SHARE Center at the start as consisting only of herself and a phone, but over the last 14 years it has grown into a full department within the Yale Health building. SHARE has four offices with a private waiting room and is staffed by licensed mental health counselors. The counselors are on call 24/7 and services can be accessed by appointment or walk-in. SHARE also offers orientation programs at the start of each academic year to the undergraduate and graduate student bodies.

“It has helped students come forward because they know someone will take them seriously,” Goldberg said. “There’s been a big shift in a positive direction.”

Wishing to spend more time with her husband, Goldberg began a phased retirement and stepped down from directing SHARE. She still has some involvement at Yale, supervising a psychology fellow in the mental health center and conducting freshman seminars. Goldberg also maintains a small private practice, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic she transitioned into working with clients virtually.

Goldberg urges current graduate students in psychology to open to all opportunities that may come their way.

“I think psychology is a very privileged profession,” she said. “You are invited into people’s stories, their inner lives. I find people infinitely fascinating. It’s a daily education that I don’t think you get anywhere else.”

 

 

 

 

Education Alumna Named 2021 Florida Superintendent of the Year

Diana L. Greene, Ph.D.

Diana L. Greene, Ph.D., graduate of NSU’s Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice, has been named the 2021 Florida Superintendent of the Year.

Greene joined Duval County Public Schools (DCPS), the 20th largest school district in the nation, in 2018. Since her tenure, DCPS’ academic performance has continued to improve, and the district is now within one percentage point of becoming an ‘A’ district under Florida’s school grade accountability system. Additionally, under Dr. Greene’s leadership the district’s graduation continues to increase.

During her 33-year career as an educator, she has spent time as a teacher, assistant principal, and principal as well as in curriculum development, staff development and in senior executive leadership. Prior to becoming Superintendent at DCPS, Dr. Greene served as Superintendent and Deputy Superintendent of Instructional Services in Manatee County.

Greene earned her bachelor’s from the University of North Florida, her master’s in educational leadership with NSU in 1993, and her doctor of philosophy at Capella university.

She will represent all Florida superintendents at the American Association of School Administrators Virtual 2021 National Education Conference February 18-19, where she will be recognized and honored for her public education service in Florida.

 

A Message from Dr. Hanbury on Health Benefits

NSU’s open enrollment for medical, life, dental and other insured benefit plans will be held February 1 through February 12 for coverage effective April 1, 2021. NSU offers comprehensive medical and other insured benefit plans as part of a robust and competitive employee benefit program.  During open enrollment, you will have the opportunity to renew enrollments, add coverages and make other needed changes to your benefit elections.

This year’s premium increases for medical insurance are a very modest 2.2% for the Preferred PPO and High Deductible PPO plans (in which the vast majority of NSU’s employees are enrolled) and 10% for the Premier PPO plan. This compares favorably to Florida Blue Cross/Blue Shield’s statewide average increase of 10%.  The new monthly premium amounts by plan and coverage tier can be found at www.nova.edu/hr/benefits, and you will receive a detailed communication from the Office of Human Resources (OHR) describing your election options for all insured benefit plans. Of particular note are the following benefit plan enhancements and additions:

  • The 2021 Preferred PPO and Premier PPO are rated as gold level plans by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid and the High Deductible PPO plan is rated as silver level.
  • Delta Dental replaces Humana as NSU’s dental insurer. The Delta Dental plan covers 178 more procedures (including child and adult orthodontia, implants, teeth whitening, etc.) and includes a larger network of dentists and dental surgeons than the Humana plan at a comparable premium cost.
  • The High Deductible PPO plan includes lower co-pays (reduced to an amount equivalent to the Preferred PPO plan) on emergency room and urgent care visits; specialist office visits; and physical, occupational and speech therapy visits.
  • Rally wellness program incentives increase from $270 to $330 per year.
  • Nationwide Pet Insurance is added as an optional benefit plan.

Importantly, all our medical insurance plans cover at 100% (with no employee co-pay or deductible) COVID-19-related expenses for provider-ordered COVID-19 testing, doctor visits, hospitalization and vaccine injections.

I encourage all of you to review the open enrollment information from OHR and make those elections that best suit the needs of you and your family. OHR will be scheduling Zoom meetings beginning the week prior and throughout open enrollment to answer questions and to assist you in your benefit elections.  Online counseling through Explain My Benefits will also be available to employees on demand.  Also, please stay connected throughout the year by participating in OHR’s wellness programming.  This year, 2,170 NSU employees attended 33 wellness covering topics such as managing stress, chronic pain, heart health, breast cancer and bariatric surgery.  Wishing you all a safe and healthy 2021.

NSU University School Students Selected As Miami Herald Silver Knight Awards Nominees

NSU University School is proud to congratulate the 15 seniors who have been selected as nominees for the Miami Herald Silver Knight Awards – one of the nation’s most highly regarded student awards programs that recognizes outstanding students who have not only maintained good grades but have also unselfishly applied their special knowledge and talents to contribute significant service to their schools and communities.

All nominees from Miami-Dade and Broward County schools will appear on a designated day to be interviewed by a panel of independent judges who will select one Silver Knight and three Honorable Mentions in various categories. The Silver Knight program culminates with a formal awards ceremony in the spring where all the nominees are recognized and the Silver Knights and Honorable Mentions are announced.

Congratulations to all NSU University School nominees for demonstrating excellence in their respective categories.

Ariel A. – World Language

Veronica B. – Digital Media

Hannah E. – Vocational

Sofia G. – Drama

Henry H. – Business

Duncan J. – General Scholarship

Amanda K. – Science

Hannah K. – Art

Daniella L. – English Literature

Navya M. – Social Science

Alexa M. – Journalism

Risa P. – Dance and Music

Peyton R. – Speech/Debate

Minnie R. – Athletics

Rebecca W. – Math

NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale Appoints Ariella Wolens as First Bryant-Taylor Curator

Ariella Wolens

NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale announces the appointment of Ariella Wolens as its first Bryant-Taylor Curator. She comes to NSU Art Museum from the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) Museum of Art in Savannah, Ga., where she held the position of assistant curator, and will begin her new position on January 19.

Bonnie Clearwater, NSU Art Museum director and chief curator said, “We are delighted to welcome Ariella Wolens. In conducting our national search, we looked for a curator whose solid experience matched the focus areas of our collection and found Ariella to be an outstanding scholar, writer and educator whose experience in the areas of CoBrA, Latin American,

19th-century American, and contemporary art, will help us broaden public access to these and other areas of our collection.”

Wolens will work closely with Clearwater and the Museum’s curatorial staff and educators in the development of new exhibitions and collection research. She will also expand on-site and virtual programs of the Museum’s research centers, organize traveling exhibitions of the collection, participate in the docent program and liaise with NSU faculty and students.

The Bryant-Taylor Curator position was made possible by a recent $1.6 million endowment to NSU Art Museum from The Jerry Taylor & Nancy Bryant Foundation that also provides funds for the Museum’s youth education programs. The impact of this gift is being magnified thanks to Nova Southeastern University’s newly established endowment challenge that matches interest on all new endowments up to 5% through 2025.

Ariella Wolens was born and raised in London, England. She received her BA in Art History from University College London and a Master’s from Columbia University in Curating and Criticism of Modern Art, where she developed a passion for Latin American Art in researching her thesis, Killing Time: The Art of Gabriel Orozco. As Assistant Curator at SCAD, she was committed to the education of the students of Savannah College of Art and Design and created significant programming within the teaching museum that served the school’s undergraduates as well as Savannah’s vibrant community of local artists and residents. While at SCAD, she curated exhibitions of artists Charlie Billingham, Sanford Biggers, Raúl de Nieves, Christina Forrer, Emily Furr, KAYA (Kerstin Brätsch and Debo Eilers), Marilyn Minter, Paulina Olowska, Wong Ping and Rose B. Simpson. She worked closely with the museum’s prestigious Walter O. Evans Collection of African American Art, and directed their historic exhibition, Embers of Freedom: Frederick Douglass and his Legacy, the final presentation of Dr. Evans’ personal holdings of Frederick Douglass’ family archive.

Following her graduate studies, Wolens worked as the curatorial assistant to art historian and curator Alison M. Gingeras, serving as the primary research assistant for Gingeras’ monograph and exhibition The Avant Garde Won’t Give Up: CoBrA and its Legacy, along with a forthcoming publication on radical feminist art, and a major retrospective of artists McDermott & McGough. Wolens has additionally worked as a researcher for artists Jonathan Horowitz and Piotr Uklański. Her writings have appeared in publications such as Art in America, Flash Art, Elephant, Gagosian Quarterly and Spike Art Magazine, as well as catalogs of artists Stu Mead and Wong Ping.

“I am thrilled to be joining the esteemed team at NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale, whose outstanding collection and inspiring leadership under Bonnie Clearwater has seen this institution become a touchstone for critical scholarship and visionary exhibitions of modern and contemporary art in South Florida,” Wolens said.  “It is an honor to have the opportunity to assist in the development of their program, contribute to the education of the students of Nova Southeastern University, and devote myself to ensuring the posterity of their historic CoBrA collection, along with their holdings of pioneering American artist William J. Glackens, and ongoing dedication to supporting the visionary artists of today.”

 

 

Halmos Chair Publishes Book on Coral Reef Crisis

 

This winter, Halmos College faculty member Bernhard Riegl, Ph.D. published a book entitled, “Population Dynamics of the Reef Crisis”. The ongoing coral reef crisis is beyond debate and is evidenced in an extensive body of research studies. Severe declines of biodiversity, along with fears of a sixth mass extinction, have not only occurred in coral reefs during the past few decades, but also in virtually all major ecosystems on Planet Earth.

The book is dedicated to Halmos Dean emeritus Richard E. Dodge, Ph.D. in recognition of his impact on coral reef research as scientist, teacher, mentor, administrator and friend.

The chair of the Department of Marine and Environmental Sciences, Dr. Riegl edited this book which includes NSU alumni contributors Brandon Brule; David Gilliam, Ph.D.; Elizabeth Goergen, Ph.D.; Matthew Johnston, Ph.D. and fellow Halmos faculty member Joshua Feingold, Ph.D. The book is published by Academic Press, an Elsevier Imprint, under its series Advances in Marine Biology.

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